in·fra·di·an
/inˈfrādēən/
adjective
PHYSIOLOGY
(of a rhythm or cycle) having a period of recurrence longer than a day; occurring less than once a day.
Some examples of infradian rhythms in mammals include menstruation, breeding, migration, hibernation, molting and fur or hair growth, and tidal or seasonal rhythms. In contrast, ultradian rhythms have periods shorter than the period of a circadian rhythm.
Ms. July had similar conversations early in the pandemic with the sculptor Isabelle Albuquerque — to whom the novel is dedicated — sometimes on long walks, sometimes while they sat 10 feet apart in Ms. July’s backyard, “yelling across the void,” as Ms. Albuquerque put it.
“Sometimes it felt like we were trying to create a new society,” she said. “We were talking about the ideas but also trying to live them. Trying to make adjustments to our lives that would allow us to have a kind of freedom we both really crave.”
They conducted various experiments together. Living by their infradian rhythms, including their menstrual cycles. Spending one night a week at their studios, away from their partners. Ms. July kept that up for years. She had Wednesdays.
The challenge wasn’t to blow up your life. It was to set off tiny bombs all the time. Maybe no one even noticed but you. It could be as small as clenching your fist.
| Marie Solis, She Wrote the First Great Perimenopause Novel